13:10-13
Amnon got Tamar to come close to him under false pretences, then he grabbed her and asked her to come to bed with him. Tamar refused, saying that such a thing should not be done in Israel. Tamar knew what the Law said, and Israel apparently had much higher moral standards than the surrounding nations. She urged Amnon not “to do such a thing”. Then she drew attention to the effect on her, and how foolish he would look. Benjamin Franklin said “Sin is not hurtful because it is forbidden, but it is forbidden because it is hurtful.”, and there is a lot of truth in this. This is one of the many instances where a woman or women come out better than the man or men in a situation. The commonly held notion that the Bible is somehow misogynistic is without foundation.
13:14-16
Amnon, however, was not for seeing sense. So he raped Tamar, wand was able to do so because he was stronger. After that his “love” turned to hate. He despised her and told her to go. Tamar again spoke in line with the Law. Amnon should have married her. Now this seems abhorrent to us, but what it meant was that Amnon would have to take responsibility for the consequences of his actions. Amnon continued in his evil stupidity and refused to listen to Tamar.
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